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Judge losing patience with feds in targeted killing FOIA case

A federal judge is losing patience with the U.S. government over delays in responding to lawsuits seeking official documents about the anti-terrorism policy known as targeted killing.

Earlier this week, government lawyers asked U.S. District Court Judge Colleen McMahon in New York for another ten days to file responses to the Freedom of Information Act suits brought by the the New York Times and the American Civil Liberties Union. The judge agreed to extend the Friday deadline, but she seemed suspicious of the government lawyers' claims that security issues relating to the classified information involved required more time.

"OK, but don't ask for any more time," McMahon wrote on the face of the government's letter asking for an extension. "If government officials can give speeches about this matter without creating security problems, any involved agencies can."